Tess of the D’Urbervilles, by Thomas Hardy, is a novel about Tess Durbeyfield, a low-class country girl who is lured into an affair by Alec D’Urberville, a wealthy playboy. Tess’s family is hoping that Alec will marry Tess and raise their social status, but Alec only wants Tess for her body.
He ruins her life, and Tess is forced to flee from her home in disgrace. Tess eventually finds happiness with Angel Clare, but Angel abandons her when he learns of her past with Alec. Tess returns home, where she dies in childbirth. Tess of the D’Urbervilles is a tragic story of love and loss set against the backdrop of rural England in the late 19th century.
We see delicate assaults on Victorian social ranks and gender domination in Thomas Hardy’s classic novel, Tess of the D’Urbervilles. The reader who only looks at the book superficially through the lens of entertainment or a good read will miss the novel’s critical foundation.
Tess is a victim of her social class as well being a victim of male domination. Tess’s story allows us to see how Tess is used and abused by both the men in her life and her social class. Tess’s father, John Durbeyfield, learns that he is a descendant of an ancient noble family, the d’Urbervilles. Hoping to improve their station in life, Tess’ mother sends Tess to live with some distant relatives, the d’Urbervilles, in hopes that Tess will marry well.
However, it turns out that the d’Urbervilles are not as wealthy as they once were and Tess is instead hired as a milkmaid by Alec d’Urberville. Tess’s innocence is taken advantage of by Alec and she becomes pregnant with his child. Tess gives birth to a baby boy, Sorrow, who dies shortly after being born.
Tess leaves the d’Urberville home and returns to her parents. Tess then meets Angel Clare, the son of a wealthy family. The two fall in love and plan to marry. However, on their wedding night, Angel learns of Tess’s past and rejects her. Tess returns home heartbroken. Tess then meets Alec d’Urberville again and he convinces her to come work for him again. Tess eventually agrees and goes to work for Alec but finds that she can no longer tolerate his presence.
To comprehend the message that Hardy is attempting to convey, the reader must examine the text and major characters carefully. That capacity to enjoy personal rights and power based on one’s social class or gender is misguided, according to Hardy. At that time, the Victorian Society was founded on the notion that high-ranking nobles or aristocracy could get away with all sorts of cruelty against women or people from lower castes simply because of their position.
Tess is a young woman who, because of her low social class, is taken advantage of by Alec D’Urberville and as a result she suffers greatly. Tess’ story is one of Hardy’s most renowned novels and has been the subject of much literary criticism since its publication. Tess Of The D’Urbervilles tells the story of a young woman, Tess, who is living in poverty with her family. Tess is sent to work for the wealthy D’Urbervilles, where she meets Alec, the son of the family. Alec takes advantage of Tess and rapes her. Tess becomes pregnant and has a child, but the child dies soon after birth.
Tess returns home to her family, where she meets Angel Clare, a young man from a wealthy family. Angel and Tess fall in love and marry, but their happiness is short-lived when Angel learns of Tess’ past and leaves her. Tess is forced to return to the D’Urbervilles, where she meets Alec again. Alec tries to seduce Tess, but she resists him. Tess eventually gives in to Alec’s advances and they begin an affair. When Angel returns, he finds Tess with Alec and leaves her again.
Tess is pregnant with Alec’s child and she goes home to have the baby. The baby dies soon after birth and Tess kills herself. Tess Of The D’Urbervilles is a tragic novel that highlights the injustice of the Victorian Society. Hardy criticizes the social class system and the treatment of women in Victorian Society. Tess is a victim of the unjust social system and her tragedy highlights the need for change. Tess Of The D’Urbervilles is an important novel that should be required reading for all students.
Gender also served as a hindrance for men when it came to committing injustices against women. Hardy used three prominent characters, Tess Durbeyfield, Alec D’Urberville, and Angel Clare, in this novel to covertly express these concepts and societal customs. In chapter two of the book, we are introduced to Tess Durbeyfield after her father learns he is descended from English aristocracy; she has just been told by her father that she is a descendant of nobility.
Tess is Tess of the D’Urbervilles, the last in a line of an ancient family. Tess is a simple country girl who is content with her life until her father learns of their lineage and tries to better their station in life by sending Tess to work for the wealthy d’Urberville family. Tess goes to work for Alec d’Urberville, thinking that he is a gentleman only to find out that he is a cad who attempts to seduce her.
Tess resists Alec’s advances and eventually flees his home. Tess then meets Angel Clare, the son of a preacher, and they fall in love. Angel leaves Tess after learning of her “sinful” past with Alec and Tess is left pregnant and alone. Tess goes back to Alec, who offers to marry her, and she accepts out of desperation. Tess eventually kills Alec in self-defense and is hanged for his murder. Tess’s story is a story of how the social expectations and norms of the time period led to Tess’s downfall.
The title Tess of the D’Urbervilles refers to Thomas Hardy’s novel about a young woman named Tess Durbeyfield who is seduced and abandoned by a wealthy man, leading to her ruin. The novel was first published in 1891 and was immediately controversial due to its frank treatment of sexual themes. Tess was Hardy’s last major work before he turned his attention to poetry.